PlayWorld (2008 animated series)
PlayWorld is the Canadian animated television series that combines sketch comedy, stop-motion, puppetry, animation and CGI, is produced by Nelvana, Stoopid Monkey and Shadow Machine and was created by Seth Green. The program is known for its unique videos messages and includes animation and stop-motion films, with humor and references to 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s pop culture. The series premiered on May 12, 2008, to positive reviews, some controversy, and high viewership; it has aired on Treehouse TV in Canada since its debut. It also airs in the US on Discovery Kids on May 12, 2008 before its re-branding as The Hub. After Discovery Kids was re-branded to The Hub, PlayWorld moved to Prism on October 10, 2010 and aired until March 27, 2017 where it permanently moved to the Qubo channel. Plot The series revolves around seven animal friends that were represented by the seven continents: Francine the Polar Bear of Antarctica, Oliver the Grizzly Bear of North America, Gynui the Ocelot of South America, Jambii the Elephant of Africa, Roger the Polecat of Europe, Ying the Panda Bear of Asia and Kenny Kidna of Australia, and their Robo-Chicken friends Ollie and Joey. Every episode had a different theme to it (e.g., "Disaster On Aisle 7" or "To The Moon") and saw the animal friends usually helping Ollie and Joey to solve common obstacles they faced. The main animation used in this format was Stop-Motion, although other skits used different animations and films commissioned from outside studios, interspersed throughout each episode. Recurring Skits and One-Shots *'The Cat With No Meow' - The animation features a cat who looks for his meow. At random times, the cat may found his meow, but ends up with a different animal sound (e.g., cow's moo or dog's bark), making the viewers believe that the cat makes the wrong animal sound. *'One-Eye, Private Eye' - Combines stop-motion and animation focusing on an animated cyclops becoming a detective and always solve mysteries thanks to a "one eye". *'RoboKid' - A parody of the Mega Man series, focusing on a robotic boy who tries to save his hometown and school from the threat of Dr. Mad (a parody of Dr. Wily). *'Cartoon Flashdance' - Features random footage of 1920s or 1930s public domain cartoons set to an unfitting 1980's pop music depending on the episode. *'Charizard VS Blastioise' - A parody of the Pokémon series. Only appeared in the episode "Field Trip to Hell". There are no Pokémon trainers in this skit. *'Do the Dinosaur Dance' - combined CGI and animation. Only appeared in the episode "Disaster On Aisle 7". Mr. Burns and Waylon Smithers Jr. from The Simpsons made a surprise appearance in this skit, with Harry Shearer reprising his role. *'Money for Nothing' - Only appeared in the episode "To The Moon". *'Pink Panther's How-To's' - A Pink Panther parody of life hack videos. In this skit, Pink Panther who teaches children about making stuffs in a new way to save money, and often results in failure in a comedic fashion. Only appeared in the episode "The Fourth Wall". *'Street Kid Fighters' - A lighter-and-softer parody of Street Fighter video games with characters portraying as kids. Only appeared in the episode "To The Moon" *'Atomic SpongeBob' - A space parody of SpongeBob SquarePants. Only appeared in the episode "Field Trip to Hell". He later returned in his TV show; The Atomic Spongebob Show. *'Watch Me How I Do!' - Traditional animation features a 5-year old stick figure with big eyes who demonstrates anything he does, although results can backfire him. The way the stick figure does depends on an episode. Category:TV Series Category:TV Shows Category:Canadian TV series Category:Canadian television series Category:American television series Category:2000s American animated television series Category:American animated television series Category:Sketch Comedies Category:American sketch comedians Category:Canadian-American shows Category:DHX Media Category:Television series by DHX Media Category:Starlight Animation Studios Category:2008 Category:YTV Category:Discovery Family Category:The Hub Category:PBS Kids Category:Nick Jr. Category:Shadowmachine Category:Nelvana Category:Stop-motion